Health literacy is an integral part of the pathway for the successful transfer of information between patients and providers. Parents of children with Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) play an essential role in chronic care as they offer critical information to providers that drives appropriate education and disease management. We propose the development and evaluation of an electronic data entry tool that enables parents to communicate data essential to treatment of their children, regardless of their own literacy skills. The research plan addresses a question central to patient-centered information management: how does health literacy influence parents' report of data on ADHD and the process-level events that result from parent-provider communication? The following specific aims organize the clinical study: proposal: 1) To assess the effect of health literacy on successful completion of parent-reported ADHD health information in both paper-based and PCHR formats, and, 2): To determine the association between health literacy and process-level outcomes for ADHD that stem from parent-provider exchange of information. The formal evaluation will study a diverse cohort of parents in a randomized trial of data entry (paper versus PCHR) for ADHD-specific information. Primary care records for children of this cohort will be analyzed for the prior 12 month period. Both a retrospective examination of documented ADHD processes of care and a prospective evaluation of the utility of data from the PCHR will occur. Literacy level is a primary variable of interest throughout the evaluation.

Parents of children with ADHD will be recruited from the greater Boston community. We are interested in enrollment of parents with a range of educational and technical backgrounds, and specifically will look to enroll parents who may not have much computer experience.

Other: Use of paper forms to write down information

Parents will be asked to write down information specific to their child's ADHD using paper forms.

Other: Computer

Parents will use a computer to complete data entry on information specific to their child's ADHD care

Eligibility

Ages Eligible for Study:

18 Years and older

Genders Eligible for Study:

Both

Accepts Healthy Volunteers:

Yes

Sampling Method:

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Parents of school-age children with ADHD

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

Primary language of parent/guardian is English or Spanish

Parent/guardian reports that child has been diagnosed with ADHD

Current child age is between 5 years and 12 years

Child in question resides with the parental subject primarily

Parent/guardian reports that they are the primary caretaker of the child

Parent/guardian reports that they are the person who communicates with the primary care provider

Parent/guardian reports that child is currently taking medication for ADHD or has taken it within the last 3 months

Exclusion Criteria:

Parent reports that child in question has been diagnosed with mental retardation, autism, pervasive developmental disorder, Aspergers, or bipolar disorder

Contacts and Locations

Choosing to participate in a study is an important personal decision. Talk with your doctor and family members or friends about deciding to join a study.
To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the Contacts provided below.
For general information, see Learn About Clinical Studies.

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00543257